Ratcheting wrench



@612. 13, 1953 O, slMON ETAL 2,655,064-

RATCHETING WRENCH Filed NOV. 29 1951 0M5 W. 15mm Gwwg 6mm INVENTORS Patented Oct. 13, 1953 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE RATCHETING WRENCH Otis W. Simon and George B. Cal-mack, Bonnets Ferry, Idaho Application November 29, 1951, Serial No. 258,898

1 Claim. 1

The present invention relates to new and useful improvements in wrenches and more particularly to a tool of this character embodying a ratcheting action.

An important object of the invention is to provide a wrench including a fixed jaw and a spring biased pivoted jaw coacting with the fixed jaw and wherein both jaws are formed with jaw faces having fiat sides to grip the flat sides of a nut and also having V-shaped notches to receive the corners of the nut, to thus provide a more effective gripping action on the nut, the fixed and movable jaws being provided with coacting stop faces to control the stress subjected to the nut to thus prevent damage to either the nut or to the wrench when applying too great a force thereto.

A still further object is to provide a tool of this character of simple and practical construction, which is strong and durable. eflicient and reliable in operation, relatively inexpensive to manufacture and otherwise well adapted for the purposes for which the same is intended.

Other objects and advantages reside in the details of construction and operation as more fully hereinafter described and claimed, references being had to the accompanying drawings forming part hereof, wherein like numerals refer to like parts throughout, and in which:

Figure 1 is a side elevational view;

Figure 2 is a top plan view;

Figure 3 is an enlarged vertical sectional view of the movable jaw;

Figure 4 is a transverse sectional view taken on the line 4-4 of Figure 3;

Figure 5 is a sectional view taken on the line 5-5 of Figure 4; and

Figure 6 is a sectional view taken on a line 6--B of Figure 3.

Referring now to the drawing in detail wherein for the purpose of illustration we have disclosed a preferred embodiment of the invention, the numeral 5 designates a handle having a fixed jaw 6 formed at its front end. The upper edge of the handle 5 slopes forwardly adjacent its front end as shown at 1, and the sides of the handle immediately rearwardly of the jaw 6 are recessed as shown at 8 and provided with a transverse pin 9 to receive the leg portions ID of a bifurcated 0r U-shaped connector for pivotally mounting on the pin 9.

The legs H] of the connector are formed at the lower rear portion of a hook-shaped movable jaw ll having its bill portion l2 positioned forwardly of the fixed jaw B.

The rear edge of jaw ll overlies the upper edge 1 of the handle 5 and is formed with a recess l3 to receive the upper end of a coil spring I 4 which has its lower end positioned in a recess I5 in the upper edge of handle 5.

The fixed jaw 6 is formed with a flat sloping jaw face IB having a V-shaped notch l! therein and the inside of the bill portion I2 of movable jaw II is formed with a plurality of flat jaw faces l8, each of which is formed with a V-shaped notch I9.

The front crotch portion of the U-shaped or pivoted connector legs I0 is formed with a flat stop area 20 adapted to abut the sloping upper edge 1 of handle 5 to limit opening movement of the jaw II, and with a stop portion 2| positioned forwardly of pivot pin 9 to limit the closing movement of jaw ll. Rearwardly of the fiat portion 20, the crotch of the U-shaped or pivoted connector legs l0 slopes upwardly to permit a wide opening movement of the jaw H.

The extremities of the fixed and movable jaws 6 and H are rounded as shown at 23 and 24 to facilitate entrance of a nut 25 between the jaws for gripping thereby.

The sides of the movable jaw ll rearwardly of legs I!) are formed with shielding plates 26 for spring [4, the plates being movable into recesses 21 which are provided in opposite sides of the handle 5.

In the operation of the tool, the spring biased pivoted jaw ll provides a ratcheting action for the wrench, and the stop portions 20, 2! provided on the pivoted jaw forwardly of its pivot 9, limit closing movement of the jaw to prevent mutilation of brass or other soft nuts or fittings when subjected to excessive pressure by handle 5.

Having described the invention, what is claimed as new is:

A wrench comprising a handle having a fixed jaw integrally formed at one end thereof, the sides of said handle being recessed adjacent said fixed jaw, a movable jaw including a bill portion and a bifurcated connector portion, said bill portion extending forwardly of said fixed jaw, the bifurcated connector portion straddling the recessed sides of said handle and being pivoted thereto, a rearwardly, upwardly sloping crotch formed between the furcations of said bifurcated connector, the forward edge of said crotch being provided with an angulated flat portion constituting a stop for limiting the closing movement of said movable jaw, shield plates extending rearwardly of the movable jaw in spaced relation to one another, a spring disposed between said shield plates, the rear edge of said movable jaw and the upper surface of said handle being provided with corresponding recesses, the ends of said spring being guidingly disposed in said recesses, said shield plates having curved edges aligned with the edges of said movable jaw. OII IS WNSIMON, i. GEORGEB. CARMACK;

4 References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number 5 131,252 553,015 1,573,409

Name Date I Craig Sept. 10, 1872 Pember Jan. 14, 1896 Lynch et a1 Feb. 16, 1926 FOREIGN, PATENTS ountfy Date Great Britain Mar. 30, 1949 

